Philadelphia Union: Hackworth releases Richards, Mendoza

When Union manager John Hackworth was assessing his options through Major League Soccer’s protracted draft season, he knew something no one else did.

In sorting through the myriad cast-off veterans and college grads available to upgrade their weaknesses — foremost among them the left back position, in the eyes of many — Hackworth thought he had an option outside the drafts, one that no one was going to scoop up a pick or two before him.

That’s why he passed on an established left back — Tyson Wahl, for one — in the Re-Entry Draft. It’s why he looked elsewhere in both the SuperDraft and Supplemental Draft.

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The Damani Richards experiment, though, has proven to be short lived.

The Trinidad and Tobago international once thought to be a promising piece of the Union’s redevelopment plan was waived Wednesday, just one month and one day after he was signed, alongside midfielder Alex Mendoza.

The man Hackworth called an “extremely talented individual” while the club was working out in Philadelphia late last month was seen by many as a rising talent. Only 18, the 6-foot Richards was seen as an intriguing blend of physicality for the left back position. He’d been a regular for the Trinidad and Tobago U-20 team and had a reputation for contributing in attack that seemed to intrigue Hackworth and the Union staff.

Hopes were high that Richards could be a long-term solution at a position where the Union have experienced a high turnover in its three seasons. The incumbent at the position, Gabriel Farfan, while highly rated by Hackworth and company, remains a converted stand-in from the midfield.

Hackworth acknowledged back in January that Richards’ transition to the States created a “difficult” adjustment period, echoed by the fact that Richards had played sparingly in the Union’s four preseason games.

Also bidding farewell to the Union is Mendoza, another young player on whom the team appeared to be very high when he was signed Jan. 24.

Mendoza, 22, arrived with an intriguing career trajectory. The native of Harrisburg and graduate of the Harrisburg City Islanders Academy plied his trade successfully in Mexico, playing for the youth set-ups at clubs like Pumas.

But Mendoza also found playing time scarce in the preseason, falling down in the midfield pecking order behind trialists like Jordi Vidal and Pantelis Kafes while returning players like Roger Torres, Danny Cruz and Keon Daniel have asserted themselves into more playing time.